Chapter 258: Chapter 257: Shadows in Sight

Chapter 257: Shadows in Sight

17^th October 2012, Scotland, Earth

(Thor Odinson POV)

Thor sighed, exasperated, “That is horrible…”

The Morrigan shook her head, “No, Odinson, your ancestor’s bargain was struck and why should anyone care? Your souls might reincarnate, but you are still different people, with different lives, ambitions and so on. And you don’t really reincarnate in the same post, but your names tend to be engraved in your souls still. It’s an off phenomenon, one that I never had the opportunity to study. No, Prince of Asgard, the cycle is not a tragedy, for you need not concern yourself with your past lives, only your own. No, the tragedy came after, the tragedy is what happened when they arrived…”

“Who?”

“I do not know their names, but your father and I call them ‘Those Who Sit Above In Shadow’ and what they did to your people, what they’re still doing to your people, is so horrible that it even horrifies me.”

Thor gulped not knowing what to expect from something that horrified the Morrigan herself.

He hesitated for a second before asking, “Who are they?”

“I don’t know for sure, and I don’t think it really matters either. What is important is what they have done to your people.”

The God of Thunder was almost too scared to ask, but he needed to know for the sake of his people, of his father, “what have they done?”

The Morrigan shook her head, “They have cannibalized the cycle of Ragnarök, feeding on the energy that it releases whenever the nine realms are destroyed, leaving barely more than what’s necessary for the cycle to start anew. But while this is horrible, it wouldn’t be something Odin would really care about.”

“So, what is it?”

“The main issue was that they wouldn’t just settle on getting the energy for themselves, they wanted it to be as efficient as possible for them, which means that they try to get Ragnarök to happen as early as possible. Instead of letting things proceed naturally, they developed a system where they manipulate the entire nine realms to achieve the highest yield of energy in the smallest amount of time. For thousands of cycles, they have taken control of the Asgardian race, and the other realms, outside of Midgard that is, which is hidden from their sight since it’s part of the greater universe, not one of the external realms. They know everything your people know, they can alter their thoughts, influence their choices to their own goals, and so much more. They’re raising you like cattle, waiting to reap the rewards.”

The Prince of Asgard was shocked by what he was hearing. How could this have happened for so long without him ever realizing it? Were his own thoughts being clouded as well? Were any of his decisions his own?

The Morrigan must have seen the horror on his face, since she tried her best to reassure him, “Don’t worry, Odinson. Your actions are your own; Mjolnir protects you, as it has done for thousands of cycles. It’s special, more so than any Uru weapon. It’s why the Shadows do their best to get rid of you; you’re an uncertain variable in every cycle, spreading change wherever you go, destroying their plans as easily as breathing. That’s why they use other methods to spread their influence over you. They try to change your mentality slightly, to resemble that of your predecessors so that your actions become more predictable, before you receive Mjolnir, that is. They try to influence your family members to mold you into their idea of the least troublesome Thor.”

The god in question was doing his best to not throw up. How much of him was himself, how much of his personality is not one that was engineered by these beings? Was he more than a puppet that can now see the strings that are moving him around?

No, he was Thor, and for better or for worse, he would always remain Thor. He had changed too much from his time in Midgard, to become worthy of Mjolnir once more, that whatever enchantment these Shadows put on him when he was younger, the boy he used to be is long gone. But no matter what, these Shadows, nay, these monsters have enslaved his people for millions of years, manipulating millions of lives throughout the nine realms for their own ambitions. It left a bad taste in his mouth.

Before he could say anything, the Morrigan continued, “Don’t worry though, this cycle is unique in a way, and the Shadows are the weakest they have ever been before, more specifically they’re too weak to try something this elaborate especially when they’re sacrificing most of their power to keep your father under their control.”

His thoughts came back to his father who should have resolved this by now. Was he enslaved as well to these Shadows, were they this powerful? “What about my father?”

“He knows about them of course. The moment he sacrificed his eye for wisdom and control over the Odin force, he has learnt of them. It’s why they always go for him. A puppet that sees the strings is a very dangerous puppet indeed, and it’s especially true when it comes to a puppet with your father’s power and strength.”

That didn’t make any sense, if his father wasn’t the one who weakened them, then who could? Who would even have the power, “Who weakened the Shadows, Morrigan?”

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The woman seemed amused by the question, “You did, Odinson.”

It took a moment for her answer to register, and even then, it didn’t make any sense, “I don’t understand…”

The green eyed woman snorted in laughter, “I suppose you don’t. Don’t worry, it’s not you, exactly, but it was your last incarnation, your previous self. It was, by far, the most powerful incarnation of Thor to be born ever since the start of the cycle. Odin had died, and he became king. Like your father, he sacrificed his eye to gain knowledge of runes and access to the Odin force, but he wasn’t just satisfied with this. He sacrificed his second eye, losing his sight entirely, for even more knowledge, and he was able to deal a critical blow to the Shadows. He surpassed his father without question and fought the Shadows valiantly but at a cost, for Ragnarök was inevitable, and he was the only one left, a pyrrhic victory indeed. He sacrificed himself so that you, your generation of Asgardians, would have a chance at freeing yourselves once and for all.”

If he was honest, the God of Thunder didn’t even know how to feel about this. A part of him was proud of the warrior his past self was, surpassing even his father in his might. It was secretly one of his greatest ambitions. He longed to surpass his father as a warrior. Truly Odin had cast a large shadow over everyone else, and Thor wanted to be seen as something more than just the son of Odin. He had given up for a time, because how could you surpass someone who conquered the nine realms, who reigned as a king both beloved and feared by everyone. It was nice for him to see that he had the potential to become a king as wise and as powerful as his father.

The Prince of Asgard must have let his smile show slightly since the Morrigan said, “Don’t get ahead of yourself; your last incarnation was special in many ways. You’ll need a lot of effort to match him. Consider yourself lucky that you are not under their control. Your brother Loki was doomed to fall from the beginning. It was always the easiest way for them to start the end of Asgard using him. He always betrays Asgard, even if he wouldn’t if the Shadows had left him alone, where the Shadows make sure that Odin neglects the boy or at least treats him differently than he does you. He’s always been their favorite toy, from what I could gather. They were very unsubtle with his downfall in this cycle, I will admit. They didn’t have enough control over Odin to force him to actively mistreat the boy, and they didn’t have the power to discretely corrupt him until he snapped.”

The God of Thunder clenched his fist at the injustice that happened to his brother. Was he innocent of his crimes? Was it all because of these damned cowards that hid in the shadows? Loki was always a god of lies, of chaos, but he was never this antagonistic towards him. He was envious of Thor sometimes, but he was never this hateful, and definitely not insane enough to try to commit genocide on his race just to prove himself to their father. Thor had blamed himself for Loki’s fall. It came out of nowhere, and the only justification was that Thor had done something to set him off. But now, it reeked of trickery and deceit. How much pain and suffering were the Shadows responsible for? He was the heir of Asgard, one of the most powerful warriors in the nine realms, so why did he feel so weak? No more, this has gone on for long enough. No more.

The God of Thunder swore to himself that he will do it. He will surpass every other incarnation and free Asgard from the torment of the Shadows. But there was something missing, “Why are you telling me this now? Why not before? Why is father acting so differently?”

The woman gave him a warm smile, “I said it before, Odinson, the answer is Hope. For the first time since their appearance, we have a real chance of getting rid of them for good. I made a bargain with your father, Asgard’s help in the future, in exchange for my help in securing Asgard’s freedom. That’s why your King is so defiant, why he has regained the life in his eyes, his will to fight. He has hope that Asgard would be free once more, as it should have been in the first place. He is still under their control, as he always is whenever the cycle begins. It’s a fixed point in Ragnarök, in every iteration, Odin will conquer the nine realms and rule over them as their king. He will sacrifice his eye for his knowledge and his access to the Odin force. They always take control over him before that, cementing their plans for Ragnarök.”

The God of Thunder was ready now, ready to fight for his people. He could feel the blood rush in his veins in anticipation for what will certainly be a legendary battle like no other, “What’s the plan?”

“Your previous incarnation foresaw this. He knew that his blow wouldn’t kill them, but that we could in the future. When I met him long ago, he entrusted me with his plans and his legacy. He hoped that with them, we would be able to destroy the Shadows forever.”

“His legacy?” Thor asked hesitating.

“There is more to being the God of Thunder, Odinson. You have barely scratched the surface of your powers, using your hammer as a crutch. I believe Odin would have removed your access to it, if he didn’t know that it would leave you vulnerable to the Shadows.”

Before Thor could reply, his surroundings changed suddenly. Instead of the valley he used to be in, there was a cliff looking at the sea. The climate was colder, and the wind was stronger. How had the witch teleported him without him even knowing about it. Thor didn’t care much for magic, unlike Loki who had taken to it like duck to water, but he had learnt the essentials, like how to stop space from being bent around him, possibly transporting him into a trap.

Before he could air his grievances, he looked behind him and saw what the Morrigan was staring at. It was what appeared to be a large rectangular rock, with an even larger stone pole coming out of it. It felt familiar for some reason, like an echo, or a voice of someone who spoke to him in his childhood. It resonated with his soul like no other. In his hand, his hammer started vibrating as well, recognizing the stone for some reason. It took a few moments, but Thor gasped when he understood what was in front of him, “That’s not possible!”

The Morrigan gave him a smug grin, “Honey, you have no idea what’s possible…”

“That’s…” Thor didn’t trust himself to continue his sentence.

“Yes, Odinson, this is Mjolnir, or more specifically, the first Mjolnir ever built.”

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